Electric traction-road.



No. 694,843; Patented Mar. 4, 1902.

L. DION. ELECTRIC TaAcnomsoAn.

[Application filed June 7, 1901.)

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet I.

I Witnesses I we nlor:

No. 694,843. Patented Mar. 4, I902.

L. HIGH. ELECTRIC TRACTION Bonn.

(Applieation flled June 7, 1901.) (No Model.)

2 sheets sheet 2.

UNTTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LEON DION, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

ELECTRlC TRACTION-ROAD.-

SLPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 694,843, dated March 4, 1902.

Application filed June 7,1901. Serial No. 63,497. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, LEON DION, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Traction-Roads, of which the followingis a specification.

This invention relates to closed-conduit or closed-pocket electric traction-roads employing a sectional exposed conductor, the sections of which are energized or rendered operative by the passing car through the effect of a magnet carried by the car.

The invention has among its objects simplicity,cheapness, and durability of construction and to increase the effect of the car-magnet and maintain the number and area of the sections of the exposed conductor at a minimum.

Of the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 representsalongitudinal sectional View of the roadway, showing the car. Fig. 2 represents a transverse section, on a larger scale, of the roadwayandthecar-magnet. Fig.3represents a plan View of part of the car-magnet. Fig. 4 represents a section on the line 44 of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 represents a detail longitudinal section showing the manner of supporting the car magnet. Fig. 6 represents a longitudinal section of one of the switches.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all the figures.

In the drawings for the sake of illustration 1 have represented a single-truck car 1 and have shown thereon transverse guard-boards 2 2, located at both ends quite close to the roadway and which form part of the truck equipment of many carsin present use. From these is suspended the car-magnet 3, comprising two elongated parallel pole-pieces 4: 4t nearly as long as the car and connected at suitable intervals by magnet-cores 7 7,surrounded by helices or windings 5 5, through which is passed a current to energize the magnet, the effect being to make one of the pole-pieces or poles of north polarity and the other of south polarity. The pole-pieces 4 4 are also connected at intervals by transverse struts or bolts 6 6, of non-magnetic material.

Suspended from the bolts 6 6, but normally supported by the roadway, are collecting-shoes S 8, having ears 9 9, formed with verticallyelongated slots 10 10, occupied by the bolts 6,

whereby vertical movement of the shoes with respect to the magnet is permitted, these shoes being suitably connected electrically with the car-motor. By this construction the collecting-shoes will be maintained by their gravity in contact with the sections of the surface conductor in the roadway if the carmagnet 3 should change its distance from the roadway-surface or from the said conductorsections.

Fig. 5 represents a means for suspending the car-magnet 3 from the truck, the same comprising at each end of the car a bracket 11, bolted to the guard-hoard 2 and having an apertured car 12, through which is adapted to slide a bolt or pin 13, to which is pivoted the upper end of a link 1 L, whose lower end is pivoted to one of the cross-bolts 6 of the car-magnet. The weight of the magnet is yieldingly supported by a spring 15, interposed between the bracket 11 and an adjustable nut 16, screwing on the pin 13. This arrangement allows the car-magnet 3.to yield vertically in case of encountering an obstruction or'irregularity in the roadway.

In the roadway is a buried feeder 17, and at proper intervals are located switches 18 18, comprising casings 19 19, whose removable covers 20 2O constitute the sections of the surface conductor and are preferably composed of non-magn etic material, such as manganesesteel. \Vithin each casing, normally supported on a horizontal partition 21, of insulating material, is an armature member 22, made of sheet-iron bent into T-shaped cross-section and elongated transversely of the roadway, so as to substantially span the distance between the pole-pieces 4 4 of the car-1n agnet. Between thelower edges of this armature-piece, forming the stem of the T, is clamped by means of rivets 23 the upper end or edge of a flexible copper conducting-sheet 2-4:, whose width is substantially equal to the length of the armature-piece and which is bentor folded on itself in the form of a loop to impartthe maximum degree of flexibility to it, and has its lower end secured to and insulated from the bottom or base of the casing 19. A branch conductor 25, passing through an insulator.

connects the conducting-sheet 24: with the feeder 17. Normally the armature member 22 rests by gravity on the insulating-partition 21, which has a slot 27 cut init to admit the stem of the armature-piece; but when the car- Inagnet comes over the switch 18 this armature-piece will be lifted into contact with the under side of the cover 20, thus making an electrical connection between the feeder 17 and said cover, from whose upper side the current is taken by the collecting-shoes 8 8, from whence it passes to the car-motor. The return to the dynamo 28 may be by way of the car-wheel 29 and the car-rail 30 or in any other suitable way.

It will be noted that the magnetic lines of force pass between the pole-pieces 4 4 of the car-magnet substantially in a horizontal direction through the armature-piece 22. This being near the surface, the magnetic circuit is a short one and a high degree of efficiency is insured for the magnet.

It has been proposed prior to my invention to employ a car-magnet having pole-pieces located in transverse juxtaposition in connection with boxes in the roadway containing movable armature-pieces and provided with covers from which the current is collected by the car, such covers having soft iron in their construction, which is utilized as a conductor of the magnetic lines of force and is also utilized as a contact-surface for the current-collector on the car. It is common in such proposed arrangements to have two or more softiron pieces in the road placed side by side and registering with the pole-pieces of the carmagnet. My invention aifords several advantages over such proposed arrangements. The cover-plate 20, interposed between the car-magnet and the movable armature-piece, is not utilized as a cond uctor for the magnetic lines of force. Being non-magnetic it may he made of materials which are superior in wearing qualities to soft iron, one such material being manganese-steel, which is very hard and durable and is also comparatively cheap. The plate may be made continuous and without joint, which is an obvious advantage. In order to insure a proper efficiency for the car-magnet, I provide a direct magnetic gap between the pole-pieces 4 4 of greater length than the combined length of the magnetic gaps between the said polepieces and the armature 22 when the latter is in its lowermost or normal position, thus giving the lines of force a greater tendency to traverse the armature in passing from one pole-piece to the other than to traverse the air.

The described construction of the armatures 22 renders them extremely light, but maintains the proper quantity and distribution of metal. The conductors 24 have also by their construction the requisite cross-section for carrying the current, combined with the maximum degree of flexibility and durability, insuring their proper performance of function.

I claim- 1. In an electric traction-road, in combination with the roadway and the car, a feeder, a sectional exposed conductorin the roadway, means to connect the feeder with the sections of the exposed conductor, an electromagnetic device carried by the car and adapted to actuate said means, and a collecting-shoe carried by said device and having avertical sliding connection therewith whereby it maintains contact with the exposed conductor at various elevations of said device.

2. A roadway-switch comprisinga box having a conductive top, an insulating-partition, V

and a connector comprising a flexible conductor located below said partition and an armature located above the partition and normally resting thereon.

3. A roadway-switch comprising an outer conductor, a horizontally-elongated armature member composed of a piece of sheet metal bent to a T-shaped cross-section, the edges forming the stem of the T, and a flexible conductor held between said edges and adapted to permit movement of the armature member toward and from the outer conductor.

In testimony whereof I have affixed mysignature in presence of two witnesses.

LEON DION.

\Vitnesses:

R. M. Henson, 0. F. BROWN. 

